Wow long time no post! It's not due to lack of exciting things but more because of having so many exciting things in such a short time. May had me out of town every week and weekend minus the first. June has been about the same but it all has been really great.
Work in May was quite the mixed bag of projects. We did our first prescribed burning at Inspiration Peak. This was a rewarding but crazy project as it ended up being 3 13 hour days rather than our normal 4 10 hour day week.
Some of our crew at the top of the peak.
The peak after getting some fire. The area is being burned to restore the natural cycle of fire to the area. Without fire the entire forest composition changes and takes on a whole new character. Since there are structures which they don't want to burn nearby a prescribed (intentional) burn is the only way to reintroduce fire safely.
Eleva running a drip torch to get the more forested areas burning.
Me at the peak.
We worked on rolling prairie in southwestern MN doing debris removal.
Jarret limbing up a tree.
A scenic area right near our worksite.
We were working in the stand of oaks pictured here. Much of the debris was created in an effort to restore oak savannah to the state park.
Our next project brought us to far Northwestern MN for various things like planting, chainsawing, sign installation, etc.
We were able to borrow Kayaks from the campground we were staying at so we were able to explore the local river at the end of the day.
We removed a bunch of logs which had plugged up a culvert. Flooding earlier in the year had swept all these logs down the river and now the plugged culvert was acting as a big catchers mitt for anything flowing down the river. Christy is bucking up one of the bigger logs here we fished out of a culvert.
Gosslings near the beach at the campground.
View of our planting site. The foreground is native prairie and the background is mostly natural wetland. The river is just behind the line of cattails.
And finally we had a project close to home on Leech Lake searching and destroying Garlic Mustard.
At the end of the day we find ways to unwind... like Hula Hooping!
We attempted to access a remote strip of National Forest Land on the shores of Leech Lake via boat. The land was hemmed in by water and impassable swamp so boat was the only way in. Unfortunately high water levels washed out any clear landing place so we had to come back in and continue working on more accessible land.
Our crew is walking along the shoreline of Leech Lake on a windy day trying to access a section where we are looking for Garlic Mustard.
For fun in May canoeing and camping (often combining both) were my go to activities. I went canoeing at Itasca State Park the 1st weekend.
A couple of Trumpeter Swans were cruising along Lake Itasca. These beautiful creatures are fairly regularly seen on the lakes of Northern Minnesota. Their slow movements across the water are graceful and their resounding trumpet is nothing short of incredible. This is especially true on a very quiet lake where the echo reverberates off the lake.
A view of the Schoolcraft Island on Lake Itasca.
A couple of loons.
Me taking a rest at the connection of Elk Lake and Itasca.
A Beaver here is slapping the water with its tail to let me know I'm on his/her turf.
The day ended with waters of pure glass and a beautiful sunset.
The second weekend of May I was actually back in NY to attend my sister Amanda's graduation. This was awesome as I really didn't think I'd be able to go but with the help of family we were able to make it happen. The graduation itself was really nice and it was amazing to be able to see my sisters and mom for the second time this year! I wasn't able to get many good pictures from the actual graduation, you'll have to talk to my mom about that, but I did get some good shots from our day at Niagara Falls National Park..
My mom posing in front of one of the many blooming trees in the park.
A view of the falls.
The rapids of the Niagara River, looking away from the falls.
Mist rising over the trees on the Niagara River.
Tulips in full bloom!
The weekend following I took part in a volunteer effort to clear out a section of the Border Route Trail. This is a 65 mile long hiking trail which traverses the Minnesota/Ontario border. This region, in my opinion, is some of the most scenic country I have ever seen and this trail means a lot to me so I love being able to get involved to keep it open.
Our campsite was in the stand of pine on the right hand side of the picture.
A view of several lakes and wilderness forest from high above on the Border Route Trail.
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My tent
The majority of our crew hunkered down for dinner under a tarp after an all day rain on our second day of trail work.
We were greeted to a misty morning on Pine Lake.
View of Pine Lake looking east from our camp.
Our crew on our final day of trail work heading back to the landing site.
NMy canoeing partner, Michael, on our last day.
A couple of Conservation Corps folks who joined on this volunteering opportunity.
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Our BRT volunteer crew back in one piece!
The following weekend I took a recreational trip up to the Boundary Waters. This was a 6 day trip with myself and five of my friends. The trip started off just awesome as we saw a moose on the road on the way in. As far as I know no one was able to get a picture but the memory will remain!
Our group ready to set sail on the Stuart River.
A Beaver Dam crossing on the Stuart River. We ran into three beaver dams on the trip and this one was the easiest to traverse as there were channels to go through.
A view of the Stuart River from a portage path.
A sunset on Loon Lake.
Brock helping coordinate our second beaver dam crossing. This one we were able to pull our canoes over.
The boundary waters has tons of exposed rocks. Some form cliffs like this one. We had fun paddling into the overhang of the rock!
We found a huge boulder submerged in this lake. It gave the illusion of walking on water.
A rocky, mossy, lichen covered portage path. These are some of my favorite as they are so unique looking!
A view of Gun Lake from some cliffs near our campsite. A couple of others from our party are down canoeing far below.
Our last beaver dam crossing involved actually bushwacking through the woods with the canoes. This wasn't so bad though as it was through a stand of old growth pine. Walking through the thick layer of pine needle duff was just a treat!
A view of the moody Lac La Croix. This day consisted of intermittent showers. When the rain gave us respite on rare occasions it made room for some beautiful views.
Alex and I attempting to catch some fish.
A large rock cliff on Lac La Croix.
Me portaging over Beatty Portage. This is an odd portage as it literally goes through someones yard (as the portage leads us to just outside the wilderness).
Our canoes ready to be loaded up on Loon Lake.
Overall this trip was just awesome. I can't wait to get up again! Hopefully sometime in August I will be able to do a serious trip. June was just about as eventful as May. Work has still been a pleasure in June. We had a week long project at Big Bog State Recreation Area. This is a large tract of black spruce/tamarack bog just to the northeast of Red Lake. It is one of larger (virtually) untouched wildernesses in the state. At the site we were erecting tree cages around cedar saplings to protect the trees.
We had lunch along the shores of Upper Red Lake one our work days. This is one of larger lakes in Minnesota and
A goose family hanging out by a beaver pond.
A view of the Boardwalk leading into the bog.
Bog Rosemary
Very typical scene in a Black Spruce/Tamarack Bog.
Columbine
More to come later as I still have some updating on June and my future plans for July!
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